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Stork food? She buildeth her neft on high. It delights in the most lofty fituations. All the nefts, which we faw, were in the higheft places the bird could find.

WE paffed fome forefts; but the trees are dwarf and poor, not resembling the timber of GREAT-BRITAIN; you will in vain look for those stately woods, which not only afford fuel, fhade, and wealth to their owners, but fend forth fleets, which give laws to the ocean. Though I loft my watch on the top of one of the highest mountains near the ZEBREROS, yet, by extraordinary good fortune, it was found by the Marigatti, or mule-drivers, and carried to the Padre Abbad of ZEBREROS, who fent it me in less than a month.

THE new STONE-CAUSEWAY, which joins the two CASTILES, and extends to GUADARAMA, is a moft magnificent public work: It was done by an order of FERDINAND VI. the late King, as appears by the following infcription on a pillar erected on the causeway: FERDINANDUS VI. PATER PATRIÆ. VIAM VTRIQUE CASTELLIE SUPERATIS MONTIBUS FECIT. ANN. SALUTIS M DCC XLIX. REGNI SUI IV. It is really a noble road, and feems owing rather to the labour and activity of a Roman, than to the flow industry of a Spaniard.

SOME parts of the CASTILES are pleasant; they are ill cultivated; have no wood of any moment; this makes fuel incredibly dear in MADRID; the expence of one fingle fire there for the winter has been known to coft fifty pounds; an amazing article! The charcoal confumed in their kitchens, and braziers, comes chiefly from GALLAPAGAR, at the distance of 30 miles, which is far enough in that country to make the carriage of it very expenfive. The principal timber they ufe, is fir, the growth of the country; their houses, churches, carriages, and furniture, are chiefly of deal; there are fometimes no less than fourteen large girders, in the cieling of a fmall apartment. One would not imagine from this circumftance, that timber was scarce. As to the water in this country, I do not think it in general good; that of MADRID is excellent, which is plain by the court's being at much expence to have it conveyed

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to diftant places. There are two fine rivers in the CASTILES, the TAGUS, and the GUADIANA; as to the MANSANARES, which runs close by MADRID, it is but a poor ftream, and falls into the XARAMA, about 6 leagues diftant from the TAGUS. was told in LONDON, that the fituation of MADRID was upon a plain, but it is a great mistake: It is built upon a chain of little hills, and, because there are higher mountains round it, at a diftance, has been supposed to be in a plain.

THE Spaniards erect pillars at proper distances upon the caufeways, to direct travellers during the fnows; we faw feveral of them in LEON, and other parts. The first comer to a Spanish inn, be his rank what it may, has the first choice of the accommodations; this occafions a fort of contest between the travellers in this country, who fhall get firft to the inn. It is a common practice to send a man on an hour or two before: We distanced one DON JOSEPH, a Biscayner, in this way; finding that he was going to the fame Posada, or inn, we detached our faithful ANTONIO, who, as fleet as an Arab, ran over the mountains in bye-paths, and arrived at the inn long before the DoN and we came to it. This contest arifes from there being seldom more than one inn in a village; at which, if disappointed, you must probably ride 8 or 10 miles before you can find another, which, at the end of a long day's journey, and in the dark, would be fatiguing, and perhaps dangerous.

UPON a review of the whole country from CORUNNA to MaDRID, one may fay, that GALLICIA is a fine fertile province; that fome parts of it are equal to many in ENGLAND; but as to LEON, it is a naked, dreadful, barren rock, except where it is covered with a few pitiful firs, or fhrubs, fuch as are about BENEVENTE and VILLALPANDO, and except fome few plains after you have paffed ASTORGA. I turned round to take a view of LEON from one of the highest mountains, and was almoft frightened at the fight; a brown horror, as Mr. POPE expreffes it, was spread over the whole; fands, rocks, and craggy precipices, formed as favage a profpect, as can be imagined. And yet this country was probably once fought for; the inhabitants furely muft find a charm in it unknown to us. In one of thefe villages we

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found a fet of people, dreffed in a whimfical manner, dancing to rude mufic; the whole appearance was entertaining and grotesque; the dance artless and odd; its natural fimplicity fhewed the people in their true character.

THE road from CORUNNA to MADRID is certainly not fo bad, as it is generally thought in ENGLAND. The mountains of GALLICIA are very paffable; the only difficult parts which I saw, were the defcent at LA FAVA, and about 12 miles, as you come out of SERRARIAS. The mountains of LEON are rather disagreeable than dangerous, and all the reft is eafy. Be it as it may, our English meffengers find no difficulty in it. The accommodations, indeed, are miferable: I have faid you must abfolutely carry your provifions and bedding along with you; and even then, unless you can bear fatigue well, lye down in your clothes, eat eggs, onions, and cheese; unless you can fleep while your mules reft, rife the moment you are called, and fet out early in the morning, before the heat comes on, you will fare ill as a traveller in

SPAIN. It is a good method to carry dried tongues with you, hard eggs, not hams, for they will not keep, as we found by experience; fome portable foup; tea, fugar, and fpirituous liquors; not forgetting even pepper and falt; and whenever you meet with good bread, meat, fowls, or wine, always to buy them, whether you want them or not, because you know not what to-morrow may produce. A knife, fork, and spoon, are absolutely neceffary, for you will find none; nor fhould you omit a pair of fnuffers, a candlestick, and fome wax-candles. Take care only not to carry any tobacco or rum; for they are all contraband, and may occafion the detention, if not the feizure of your baggage. Particularly bring with you as few books as poffible, for the inquifition will feize them. My baggage was detained a fortnight on account of my books; and THE EARL of BRISTOL was obliged to fpeak twice to GENERAL WALL, before he could release the captives. Many of these circumstances seem trifling, but they are fo material, that those who happen to travel without them in this country, will find, by dear-bought experience, that all these trifles have their use, and if neglected,

Hæ nugæ feria ducent

In mala.

LETTER

LETTER

II.

The STATE of RELIGION in SPAIN.

ITH regard to ancient religious rites or customs in this

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W 'Country, there was probably in early times a great mix

ture of all forts. The first accounts of SPAIN, that are clear and authentic, are, I believe, those in STRABO and LIvy. The face of it then was certainly very favage and barbarous. It could have no religious notions befides its own, but from GAUL, ITALY, or AFRIC, from the PHOENICIANS, CARTHAGINIANS, GAULS, or ROMANS: and what those were, are well known.

MARIANA tells us, that Christianity was first preached in SARAGOÇA by St. JAMES, 42 years after CHRIST and for this he quotes ISIDORE, bishop of SEVILLE. With all due deference to the authority, though epifcopal, I must beg leave to deny the fact; for St. LUKE fays exprefly, that St. JAMES was killed at JERUSALEM. The SPANIARDS have likewise another tradition concerning this apoftle; which, though believed by themselves, will hardly find credit among Proteftants. It is, that St. JAMES, by birth a SPANIARD, has been often seen armed in the air, going before the van, and protecting the SPANISH armies: Which circumstance you may read in Boldonius, if you like it. Whether it be for these reasons, or others, I cannot fay, however this fact is certain, that SAN JAGO, or St. JAMES, hath from the earliest times been ever revered and worshipped as the guardian, and tutelar faint of SPAIN.

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WHAT innovations, or changes their religious worship underwent from the first planting of Christianity to the arrival of the GOTHS, or the invafion of the MOORS, would perhaps be impoffible to fay: That the Gothic princes embraced the Chriftian faith, is clear from many evidences ftill remaining, not in SPAIN only, but in ENGLAND and other countries: That the MOORS would never receive Chriftianity among them, appears but too plainly from the enmity that hath ever fubfifted between the two people, from their final expulfion under PHILIP III. and the odium with which they pursue them to this day.

THAT the JEWs have always fubfifted here in fuch numbers was probably owing to this circumftance: when TITUS carried back with him to ROME fo many thousand captive Jews, the fhattered remnants of that devoted people, and difperfed them afterwards throughout the world; as SPAIN lay convenient for their paffage out of ITALY, and being a wide and extended country, multitudes of them probably fled for an asylum there: Tho' great numbers remained at ROME and in ITALY, as appears by the edicts against them afterwards, and by the religion of the captives fpreading fo much among their conquerors: A circumftance which RUTILIUS has finely lamented;

Atque utinam nunquam Judæa fubacta fuiffet
Pompeii bellis, imperioque Titi.
Latius excifæ gentis contagia ferpunt,

Victorefque fuos natio victa premit.

That the Jews had in fome parts of SPAIN, and at fome periods, the free exercise of their religion, and worship, is an undoubted fact: There is an Hebrew Temple still remaining at ToLEDO, which I have seen, as a standing proof of it to this day.

WHAT is of more moment to us is, as may be collected from Dr. GEDDES's feveral tracts, that no western church has preserved fo many, and fuch authentic monuments and records, as the SPANISH church hath down to the VIIIth century. It was antiently exactly the fame with the present church of ENGLAND, had the fame NICENE CREED, and appealed to the fame general coun

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